At number 30, we find one of Australia’s best on the Eurovision Top 100 list: “Sound of Silence” from 2016.
Australia entered the Eurovision Song Contest as a one-off special guest star in 2015 with “Tonight Again,” but did so well that they were invited back in 2016. To date, they have appeared at every contest since. As of 2024, the irony is that Australia’s two best entries were their first two, where they came to win after decades of loving Eurovision from afar.
Dami Im’s spectacular effort in Stockholm in 2016 was one for the books.
Vital Information: “Sound of Silence”
| Song | Sound of Silence |
| Performed By | Dami Im |
| Written By | Anthony Egizii & David Musumeci |
| Country | Australia |
| Year | 2016 |
| Language(s) Performed In | English |
| How It Fared | 2nd Place (511 Points) |
| Was It Fair? | Not unfair, but this was our winner |
What I Liked
Dami was radiant during her performance, and not just for the fact that her outfit was stunning. She might have been sitting on a platform for most of it, but the deed to the stage must have been in her name, because she utterly owned it.
Vocally, this was a complete metaphysical slay. She killed it – no notes.
The staging was relatively simple: She sat on a platform for most of it, was solo, and it was light on props. It was nevertheless effective, and was made better with the few visual effects we got (for example, when she appeared to be doing a touchscreen motion). Not only did it fit with the theme of the song, but it allowed for Dami to be highlighted as the star, which is what this performance deserved. My attention was nowhere but on her for three minutes.
Other Facts
- Australia won the second semifinal and won the grand final jury vote in a landslide, getting either ten or twelve points from 18 countries. However, they came in fourth in the televote, allowing Ukraine to squeak home with the victory.
- As of 2024, this was Australia’s best-ever finish at Eurovision. 511 points is also by far the most the country has ever received to date.
- Australia went 13th in the 2016 grand final out of 26 songs.
Not an Oxymoron: Listen to the “Sound of Silence”
Because the video is on YouTube, of course. Please note: This is the official video, not the Eurovision live act (which, if you can find it, is very much worth the watch).
